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Posted on Aug 28, 2004 - 01:31 AM by Admin |
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And now for the latest Glorious Gal...the extremely talented Taki Soma! Taki is an artist for Silent Devil Productions and judging by some of the art on her website, she just may be the next Alex Ross! So, sit back, relax and read on as Taki tells us about her career as a female comics creator, the differences between American and Japanese comics, her love for Gilmore Girls and much more!
Katrina French: First off, thank you very much for doing this interview!
Taki Soma: You're so welcome! And please excuse my prolix responses.
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Katrina French: How did you get interested in comics?
Taki Soma: It all started since birth. I love anything illustrated. I started drawing before I could retain memory. I read a few awesome comics growing up, for example; "The Killing Joke." But it was really when I was 22 years old that I discovered just how much I love comics, especially superhero comics, with their super abilities, humanity and their sacrifices to save people. Superheroes are like samurais. It's about honor, and protecting the weak. It's a melancholy lifestyle, but admirable and gallant as well. I guess you can say that I started reading comics from being exposed to it everyday by my boyfriend at that time.
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Katrina French: Have you found it difficult to break into the industry especially since it is so male-dominated?
Taki Soma: Absolutely. I've had incidences whereas I thought I might be getting a good lead, only to learn that the lead wanted my contact information to ask me out. And of course, that lead wanted nothing from me when I would turn them down. It's been a long journey spiritually. I sought answers from many to make sure I'm on the right path by pursuing a career in comics. I've questioned my talent many times. I've really been discouraged in the past. Without my ambition and love for comics, I wouldn't be where I am today. I've come to terms with the issue and I think I've finally found the balance I needed to overcome the gender issues in this industry, mostly thanks to my parents and Chris Moreno, the artist for DVKA, publishing through Silent Devil Productions.
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Katrina French: You were born in Japan and lived there until you were 10 years old. Yet it is interesting to me (and refreshing) to see that you don't do any artwork in the anime or manga style. Why is that?
Taki Soma: I grew up with manga and anime for sure. Many of my true influences come from the Japanese culture and its obsession with manga comics. But the over exaggerated characters with their huge bright eyes and their freaky hair really turns me off visually and the characters are usually underdeveloped personality-wise. Then you take Western style comics, and the characters are rendered more realistically, and are as deep as the ocean. Besides, I love capes and tights. Drawing in comic book style is very satisfying and challenging.
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Katrina French: Why do you think that comic books aren't read by as wide of an audience here like they are in Japan?
Taki Soma: I'm not quite sure, but I blame the societal stigma reputation. In Japan, you're not considered nerdy or geeky if you read comics. Here, if you read comics, you're a young white male who lives in their paternal basement, feeding on Cheetos and Mountain Dew as the staple of their diet, and completely lacks any social skills to speak to the outside world - nobody wants to be stereotyped into that category. Besides that, comics are readily available all over the city in Japan, not only in comic book stores, but also at train station kiosks, corner stores, gas stations, you name it, and they are sold there. You will see comics offered as a reading material in hospitals, inside a cab, restaurants, etc. Comics are literally everywhere. Plus, comics in Japan offer quite a larger range of genres. There is a comic book specific to pretty much whatever you may be into. All of these aspects play into how society may view comics...but this is just a conjecture on my part.
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Katrina French: I've read that you really like Alex Ross' work. Is he your biggest inspiration?
Taki Soma: I don't like Alex Ross. I LOVE Alex Ross. He's the reason I pursue a career in comics. He's the reason I love comics so much. He's the reason...okay, too much? Yea, I know. But anyone who knows me pretty well will tell you that Taki Soma celebrates Alex Ross in her daily life. His run on Marvels is what made me the fanatic I am today. I was 22, bored, and uninspired. I'd read comics here and there through the years since moving to America, but his vision of superheroes literally freaked me out. That first sequence with the Human Torch on fire made me dizzy with admiration. I started compulsively collecting comics soon after that initial encounter. I have his posters hanging on my walls; I have the Kingdom Come Superman statue he designed on top of my television set. Seriously, his art brings tears to my eyes. His vision is what I seek in superheroes. He brings them to life, to bring humanity and courage in their eyes. I also believe he's got such a good understanding of a superhero psychology, their doomed sadness that they will never lead a normal life, their dedication to the people they save purely out of selfless duty, and their capacity to understand their own powers and the everyday struggle they have with it. He understands those aspects completely. To me, he's a true artist, because he doesn't just paint with techniques and skills he learned, but with a heart also. You can see his soul burning through his paint strokes. It's amazing! Next time you stare at an Alex Ross piece, sit down...really look into the painting and feel what he's trying to convey - and that's when my heart skips a beat and I feel a sting of a tear behind my eye. EVERYTIME! And yes, he is the biggest inspiration. Of course, my art will never compare to his greatness, but I do hope I can inspire someone else like Alex did for me. I've only met him once...by accident for a couple of minutes, but I'll never forget that feeling and I hope to meet him again and tell him how much of my life and inspiration I owe to him.
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Katrina French: What are your favorite comics (past and present)?
Taki Soma: The list would be too long. Oh, man! My favorite character is Daredevil. But that's not saying much since a lot characters are close second. I love the Fantastic Four, Superman, Batman, Green Arrow, Flash, Hellboy…the list goes on…you name it, I probably love it.
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Katrina French: Do you have a favorite writer that you'd really like to work with in the future?
Taki Soma: I had the pleasure of being introduced to Jim Krueger at the Chicago Wizard World. JIM KRUEGER! He actually made me nervous and I shut my fat trap around him. He's a striking man with a commanding presence. I believe he can pretty much write anything and it will be very epic. I'd LOVE to work with him. And then there's Garth Ennis; his run on The Preacher was crazy. I've never read anything like it and I'm pretty sure I'll never read anything like that ever again. But his dark gritty ways of twisting everything around and rebuild everything from the pebbles on the ground...well, that would be Garth Ennis, and I love the bloody gore he covets in his comics. I believe I would have some fun drawing that. Let’s not forget Jeph Loeb, he has this ability to make me so darn emotional. I remember a few years back, at the Chicago Wizard convention, I was there by myself and picked up the first 3 issues of Daredevil Yellow. I kid you not, in the midst of the sea of people, tears started rolling down my face. I’ve felt very emotional over a comic book and have shed tears over them, but I knew Jeph was something special when I could openly let it out at a con. He’s definitely another one I dream of working with…But then again, these are legendary writers who are way out of my league. But someday, I will reach my goal. I'll never stop. My ambition is what's keeping me alive.
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Katrina French: What medium do you like to work with the most when creating art?
Taki Soma: So far, I've enjoyed working with pretty much everything I've worked with, with the exception of colored pencils. I've worked with charcoal the most and am very comfortable with it. But I love to challenge myself. I paint with gouache, watercolor, acrylic, and in the high school years, oils but it leaves too much bad fumes so I tend to stay with water based colors nowadays. I also took up an evening class for sumi-e recently, which is a Japanese style ink painting. Pastels are also fun to work with and of course, the almighty pencil. They are all challenging, and oh so exciting.
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Katrina French: How long does it usually take you to crank out one page of a comic?
Taki Soma: With thumbnails and layout and whatnot, I'd like to believe it takes 5-8 hours. I don't really know, actually. I think I'm on an alternate plane when I'm working. The world around me kinda melts.
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Katrina French: Do you like the writer to be real specific in what he or she wants the pages to look like, or do you like to have creative freedom?
Taki Soma: My editor/writer with Silent Devil Productions, Christian Beranek has a way of giving me almost a complete freedom with my pages. If I make a suggestion, he'd take the initiative and re-writes his script, he's amazing and trusts me completely. Now, I've signed on to pencil a new series for Redoubt Studios' Ramsey Rusef recently. And his script is very descriptive and specific, compared to Christian's. I can't really say if I enjoy one or the other better. I just know what my boundaries are and just feel lucky to be working at all!
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Katrina French: How do you prepare yourself before sitting down and drawing?
Taki Soma: Good music, or a good movie with commentary. I'm quite finicky with my music. I like classical, orchestrated movie sound tracks, old school jazz, 80's new wave, pop-punk, opera...just weird sh*t. My current favorite movie is "Bubba Ho-tep" with Bruce Campbell commentating as Elvis Presley - it is hilarious. I love silent movies as well, but unfortunately, I can't "listen" to the movie and follow the story without watching because, well, it's silent. And I just chug away at my pages immersing myself in music or movies. Drawing is such a blessing.
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Katrina French: You were going to go into advertising, correct? What made you change directions and go into the comic industry?
Taki Soma: Yes, I was attending the famous Brainco Advertising School in Minneapolis. I literally thought that I could be an art director in advertising and still pursue comics at the same time. I was dead wrong. I never had time to draw. My life was consumed by advertising. I realized that I have this one and only chance to make myself happy in this short lifetime and it's not through the ad world. I dropped out and never looked back. Money doesn't make people happy. Comics and drawing make me very happy.
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Katrina French: What is it like working with the Silent Devil crew?
Taki Soma: The SDP cores are the 3 Beranek brothers, Christian, Adam and Nick. They have a harmonious wheel they keep well oiled and running at full speed. I mostly work with the E.I.C., Christian, for he's been my writer. He's very flexible with the people he works with. A very pleasant, down to earth person you can joke with and to top it, they are all very ambitious, and are very skilled at marketing. They have gone from a struggling small press to a very recognizable indie very quickly. I feel lucky to have met them when I did and lucky to be riding the giant wave they are creating. They are based out of Virginia, so I've only met them in person a few times, but the few times we've met, we partied like old friends.
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Katrina French: You just got back from Wizard World Chicago where you had a table for the first time at a convention. What was that like?
Taki Soma: Well, I worded that part a little weird. I mentioned that I've been attending Wizard World Chicago consecutively for 6-7 years, and it was my first time in Chicago that I had a table after all these years, but my first actual table at a convention was at the Wizard World L.A. in March. And it was a blast. I met up with the Silent Devil crew, along with other artists working for them - Chris Burke, Dave Fairley, Michael Bencik and Chris Moreno. They are all so talented and are funny as hell. I have never had so much fun hanging out with people I barely knew. I met a lot of people who have supplemented my career and art and some turned into good friends, as well. Chicago was great because not only did I meet even more people, but also was able to catch up with many friends I made in L.A. and of course, picked up another penciling gig with Redoubt Studios. Thanks to Mitch Hyman of Bubba the Redneck Werewolf for believing in me and pimping my art.
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Katrina French: What are your goals for your future in the comic industry?
Taki Soma: To make a mark, and to change lives like how a lot of creators changed mine through their comics. To make it big, to work on titles I longed for, for so long. To make sure to stay humble and to grow as an artist until the day I pass. To be able to quit my day job and to dedicate my life to art and also writing (I have a few stories I need to get out before I die), to change the way society views comics so that this medium can soar, just like manga does in Japan. Those are just my "to do" list. My ambition will never cease to see the end; the list will keep on growing.
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Katrina French: What has been your favorite piece of art or commission that you created?
Taki Soma: I did a couple of pieces just recently for myself, but in actuality, I did for Alex Ross. I drew a Clark Kent and a Superman piece from the movie "Superman" starring Christopher Reeve. I was hoping and praying I might run into Alex Ross at the con, and be able to thank him for his inspirations and give him one of the originals. My art doesn't even compare to his, but it was an effort I put forth for Alex Ross exclusively and I think those pieces particularity has that "soul" I see in his art. I think he deserves to know just how much his art can move a person. And my art is the only thing I can offer anybody.
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Katrina French: What's next for you in terms of your artistic career?
Taki Soma: I will be attending the Minneapolis comic convention, Fallcon as well as Wizard World Dallas in November. Besides comics, I've always had a tender spot for children's book illustrations, as well as fantasy art, and advertising illustrations. I will push my art everywhere, mostly in comics, but outside as well. I want people to enjoy what I can create with my own two hands. I want to inspire people and let people realize just how beautiful life is when you have a drive and ambition that I have for life.
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Katrina French: A little more about Taki...Do you have a favorite sports team?
Taki Soma: S...por..ts? huh? I like to be active. I hate watching other people be active while I sit on my butt. So no, I don't watch sports. I work out and stay active to keep my mind sharp. Sorry.
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Katrina French: What is your favorite TV show?
Taki Soma: Futurama (BRING IT BACK!), Family Guy, Nip/tuck, and OMG, I can't believe I'm admitting to this - Gilmore Girls.
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Katrina French: Who is your favorite non-comic book author?
Taki Soma: Cordwainer Smith - a sci fi writer from the 60's. Please check him out. He's AMAZING. The only commensurable writer is Alfred Bester, and he's not even all that similar to Cordwainer Smith. Smith has a very unique style all his own. Also, I love Asimov and Arthur C. Clark. But who doesn't???? Am I right??
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Katrina French: What is your favorite drink?
Taki Soma: I love water. I guzzle it by the gallons. I treat myself to soda maybe twice a month, if at that. I don't drink coffee, and as for alcohol, I love my simple little screwdrivers. I also enjoy wine/champagne. Really, as long as it's not beer and beer isn't completely off the list, I'll drink it. I hope my parents are really proud of me right now.
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Katrina French: Do you have any pets?
Taki Soma: 2 Chinchillas, Socrates and Galactus, who are always plotting against evil together. Also, once upon a time, I had 2 cats. One was named Havok, he had bi-colored eyes and had black and white coat. He'd walk around with his mouth gaped open all the time. I think he was slightly retarded. Then there was the six-toed Rogue - she was orange and white and her meows sounded like an old woman hacking up blood. The cats ended up with my ex-boyfriend and I miss them tremendously.
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Big thanks go out to Taki Soma for taking the time to sit down and talk with Katrina French. If you would like to see more of this Glorious Gal's work, visit Silent Devil.Com or check out Taki Soma.Com!
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